Education – Page 46 – mrc's Cup of Joe Blog

HTML5 is finished: What would you like to see?

Big news this week: The Worldwide Web Consortium (W3C) announced that the specifications for HTML5 are finally complete! While it doesn’t technically become the standard until 2014, all of the HTML5 features are finalized.

Wait…what is HTML5?

Let me quickly explain HTML5 for those unclear on the topic. HTML5 is the next iteration of HTML, the markup language used for structuring web pages. While it does bring some new features, HTML5 is simply an improved version of the HTML standard that we already know and love.

What do we need to know about HTML5?

HTML5 brings a bunch of new features, like offline storage, native audio and video, improved semantic markup, and more. If you’d like to learn more about HTML5, here’s a great resource for you. We’ve also written up some tutorials over on the techblog.

Your turn: What would you like to see in m-Power?

While we’ve already added some HTML5 features into m-Power (and plan on adding more), I’d like to get your thoughts. What HTML5 features and capabilities would you like to see added to m-Power in the next year? Which new features would most improve your web (or mobile web) applications?

I’d really love to hear your thoughts. Feel free to add your suggestions in the comments section on this post.

3 new realities IT must learn to accept

By Joe Stangarone / Tech trends

How would you describe your IT department? Are they innovators, laggards, or somewhere in between? In case you’re unfamiliar with those terms, they come from the technology adoption lifecycle concept–a sociological model developed in the 50’s that describes the adoption or acceptance to new products or innovations.

While that concept is generally applied to consumers, I believe it just as easily applies to IT departments.

Every major technological shift comes with varying levels of acceptance among IT departments. Some drive new trends (innovators). Some welcome new trends with open arms (early adopters). Others sit back and wait to see what everyone else is going to do (majority). Still others are reluctant to change, with some even actively fighting it (laggards).

That being said, some trends are out of your control. These trends are driven by consumers. It doesn’t matter which category your IT department falls under–you must adapt. In fact, you could refer to these as more than just trends. They’re realities. In other words, they’re not up for debate. You can’t sit back and wait to see what others will do. You can’t refuse to change.

What are these realities? While I’m sure there are more, I’ve put together a short list of 3 realities that your IT department must learn to accept: …

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5 ways BI will change in the next 5 years

By Joe Stangarone / Business Intelligence

The world of Business Intelligence (BI) is undergoing some pretty fascinating changes. Whether or not you buy into the “Big Data” hype, you can’t deny the fact that we’re generating crazy amounts of data–more so than ever before.

What are we doing with all of this data? Or, more specifically, do we fully understand the potential? I’m not so sure that many companies know the answer to those questions.

While these changes create many questions, here’s one thing you can count on: Data analytics is changing, and will play an increasingly important role in the business world. When you combine this deluge of data with recent tech trends, we get a few very important changes to the world of Business Intelligence. What are they? Here are 5 key ways that BI will change in the near future: …

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Top 6 strategic IT priorities for 2013

By Joe Stangarone / Strategy

Think back just 10 years ago. Smartphones and tablets (as we know them today) didn’t even exist yet. Social media was a new concept. Mentioning the term “Big Data” would just bring you awkward stares.

My, how the times have changed.

Fast forward to today. Businesses are currently experiencing some of the most rapid technological changes since the rise of the web. Smartphone and tablet adoption have exploded. PC usage is on the decline. Cloud computing is on the rise.

With all of these changes, which areas should your IT department focus on in the next few years?

I’m curious to hear your opinions. What do you think are the biggest strategic issues facing IT departments going into next year? While I’d love to hear your thoughts in the comments, I’ve created my own list of 6 issues that every IT strategy must include going into 2013: …

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3 ways IT causes Shadow IT (and how to fix it)

By Joe Stangarone / Shadow IT

Suppose your car’s “check engine” light turned on. What do you do? Do you take it to the mechanic and ask him to find the problem? Or do you ask him to remove the light?

Of course, you fix the problem. Everybody knows the light isn’t the problem–it’s a sign of a larger problem.

I mention this example because it ties in nicely to the growing “Shadow IT” problem. For those unfamiliar with the issue, Shadow IT is the term used to describe IT systems and solutions built within an organization without the IT department’s knowledge or approval. The IT department cannot control these systems, which creates all types of data security problems.

CIOs and IT managers around the world are asking the same question: How can we stop Shadow IT? I’ve seen some companies try threats. Others try to limit procurement budgets. Unfortunately, these types of approaches rarely work.

Why? As it turns out, they’re asking the wrong question. Asking “How can we stop Shadow IT” is the equivalent of asking a mechanic to remove your “check engine” light.

Why? Shadow IT is not the problem. Like a “check engine” light, Shadow IT is a sign of much larger problems. When business users aren’t satisfied with the services and support they receive from IT, they look for other solutions. Users aren’t maliciously trying to harm the company. They just aren’t getting what they need from the IT department.

So, if you want to fix the problem, you must first identify what’s causing the problem. Rather than asking “How can we stop Shadow IT?”, perhaps IT departments should be asking, “How are we causing Shadow IT?” Why would end users want to bypass the IT department in the first place? To help identify the problem, I’ve created a short list of the most common ways IT departments unwittingly create Shadow IT: …

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The big tech trend that you can’t ignore

By Joe Stangarone / Application Architecture, Tech trends

What’s the most important tech trend going into 2013? Some say mobile. Others say cloud computing. There’s also lots of buzz surrounding areas like BYOD, consumerization, shadow IT, and business analytics.

They’re all wrong. There’s one trend that’s more important than all of those trends combined, yet is widely ignored. It’s a trend that determines a company’s ability to take advantage of many of those new “hot trends” (mobile, cloud computing. etc…) that everyone is talking about.

What is that trend? This important, yet widely ignored trend is the shift towards modern application architecture. Yes, I know it sounds boring. Who wants to talk about architecture when they can talk about exciting trends like mobile apps, cloud computing, and analytics? You might…once you see what good architecture lets you accomplish.

What’s driving this trend? Companies are slowly realizing that their outdated application architecture is holding them back. They’re realizing that without modern architecture, they’re not even ready to think about the other new trends of the day.

So, the big questions are: How does outdated architecture hold you back from new trends? How does modern application architecture help your company adapt to current trends? To answer these questions, let’s take a look at the impact application architecture has on a few of the current tech trends. …

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4 ways to breathe new life into your old systems

By Joe Stangarone / ERP Systems, Modernization

Is your old enterprise software hurting your company? It happens more than you think. Although your old enterprise system might still “work”, it could be wasting money, harming productivity, or holding your company back. How so? Here are three common ways that old enterprise software can hurt a company:

1. End users are forced to work outside of the system: If end users aren’t happy with the tools provided by an enterprise system, they find workarounds outside of the system. A common example: Enterprise systems often offer sub-par reporting options, driving users to create their reports with Excel. This is not only inefficient, but leads to errors and wasted money.

2. You pay for unnecessary licenses: How many of your licensed users actually use your enterprise software? For instance, maybe some licensed users are no longer with the company. Perhaps others have switched job roles and no longer use the software. Chances are, you’re paying more in licensing fees than you should.

3. Locks your company to old technology: Does your old enterprise software keep your company from taking advantage of newer technology like web applications, mobile apps, or cloud computing? If so, it not only makes your company appear outdated, it’s also keeping you from all of the benefits that come with these new features.

So, if your old enterprise software is harming your company, you must answer one big question: What are you going to do about it? After all, replacing an ERP, MRP, or any other type of enterprise system is no simple job. It’s expensive, risky, and time consuming. As anyone who has experienced it knows, when implementations like this fail, they fail spectacularly. …

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5 new skills necessary for modern development

By Joe Stangarone / Application Development, Web Applications, Web Development

The rapid rate at which technology evolves is both a blessing and a curse. On one hand, new tech trends give companies new opportunities to improve their business. For instance, the rise of mobile apps is already helping all types of companies in many different ways.

On the other hand, keeping up with new tech trends is no easy task, as new tech trends require a new set of skills. For example, take a look at the ever-changing world of application development. Business application development is becoming more complex, driven in part by recent trends like the web, mobile, and the cloud. While these new trends expand business opportunities, they also require an ever-expanding skill-set.

How exactly have these new tech trends changed application development? What new skills are required for modern application development? To help you understand how development has evolved, I’ve created a list of 5 new skills that are essential for modern application development. …

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